Students demonstrate against federal immigration policies, call for sanctuary campus

Students gathered to demonstrate against the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement police on Friday, joining a national day of protest in support of immigrants and against the deployment of federal agents across the country.

The event, titled “ICE out of New Brunswick,” began in front of the Center for Latino Arts and Culture on College Ave and marched across campus, around the city of New Brunswick, then gathered in War Memorial Park to hear from speakers and organizers.

Demonstrators called for the end of civilian deaths by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other federal agents, and for University President Tate to declare Rutgers a sanctuary campus where ICE and other federal agents will not be permitted on campus or in student housing without a warrant.

Some organizers spoke about the recent killings of U.S. citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti by federal agents, as well as people who have died while in ICE detention centers.

Referring to the killing of an El Paso family’s dog by ICE agents, one student speaker told WRSU that her passion for animals drove her to the podium at War Memorial Park. “How could they do that to such a poor innocent animal?” the student asked. “You know, it makes you really wonder how much longer is it going to be until it’s every single one of us, documented or not?” 

Speaking to demonstrators, the student called on others to continue fighting against the administration’s actions through protest and obstruction. “So I demand this of you: care with an anger that burns in your soul,” the student told demonstrators. “If our world has become numb to human suffering, then we must let empathy be the weapon to cure it.”

Demonstrators chanted in both English and Spanish, shaming the Trump administration for their attacks on immigrants and calling for unity against ICE. Many demonstrators held signs calling for the abolition of ICE, as well as describing specific loved ones detained by ICE.

Multiple student demonstrators condemned the actions of ICE against members of the community and called for Rutgers University to become a sanctuary campus. 

“It’s despicable and vile, the violence that has been perpetrated by ICE agents to members of our communities and neighborhoods,” one student said. “New Brunswick is a city that really looks after each other, [and] Rutgers as a student body should be looking after other students.” 

Another student worried his own family may be deported, despite having American passports, simply due to coming to the United States as immigrants. “My whole family are immigrants and I just feel like it’s wrong that people are getting gunned down and deported for no real reason.”

The student continued that he hopes the university administration and state government can stand up for students and families threatened by ICE detainment. 

While the event was primarily organized by students, the demonstration found support from New Brunswick residents as they marched through the city. Some joined the march, while others showed support with fist pumps from nearby buildings and honks from passing cars. One international student supported from afar, saying he felt afraid of potential repercussions for direct participation.

One member of the community showed his support from his car while stopped in traffic, thanking students for advocating for the community. “This [protest] is really good, because a lot of Latinos live here,” the man said in Spanish. “They do this for all Latinos.”

The event was organized in part by immigrant resource group Movimiento Cosecha. Li, a community organizer with Movimiento Cosecha, told WRSU he was encouraged by important political involvement shown by students. “[Demonstrating] is necessary, especially when there is an administration that is determined to make life a living hell for certain people,” Li said. “Today, Rutgers is not letting us down.”

According to Li, his organization provides resources and community aid to those affected by federal immigration operations and works with the families of detainees, who are often given little information about the location and condition of their loved ones.

In a speech to demonstrators, Li recounted stories from detainees of ICE brutality, including serving moldy and expired food to detainees at the Delaney Hall detention center in Newark and two students detained by ICE while walking to high school in South Brunswick and North Bergen.

Li called on demonstrators to work with organizations like his and help immigrant families impacted by ICE. He especially asked bilingual speakers to reach out, as they can help detainees given legal representation who do not speak their language. 

Li also asked attendees to call the DIRE hotline to report any ICE activity they see.

John Hsu, a candidate for New Jersey’s 6th congressional district, was also at the demonstration and called out the Trump administration and their disregard for human rights. “It would be good if Rutgers does not cooperate with ICE,” Hsu said. “I think Trump and Secretary Noem have been pushing the boundaries of what our rights are, and it’s becoming really lawless.”

While federal immigration operations were the main topic discussed, some attendees platformed other issues, such the liberation of Palestine and general critiques of the Trump Administration.

One representative of Students for Justice in Palestine spoke to demonstrators about their ability to create change. “This is our time as students to stand in unity with the community outside Rutgers,” the student told demonstrators. “We can not rely on our institutions.”

Speaking with WRSU, the student said the federal agent deployments and the conflict in Gaza were important issues that students should speak out against. She also called the U.S. complicit in the conflict in Gaza and said she felt compelled to speak out when her government hurts innocent people.

Another student affiliated with SJP told WRSU that “we held a protest for Palestine earlier in the year and I was kind of disappointed by the lack of people that showed up, and I was pleasantly surprised to see the entire street was filled up by people coming out to protest [today] and I think it’s really good that we showed up for our community.”

From start to finish, hundreds of people participated in the demonstration. The crowd safely dispersed from War Memorial Park shortly after 6 p.m.

The event was one of many demonstrations across the country Friday. Thousands of protestors marched in New York City, Minneapolis and Los Angeles against the Trump Administration and the immigration enforcement crackdowns. Other demonstrations included economic boycotts, businesses closing and school walk-outs.

The national protests followed the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by federal officers in Minneapolis following the Trump administration’s deployment of immigration enforcement operations to the city.

Story by Adam Kaplan, Keya Raval, Andrew Hawthorne, Avani Trivedi and Noah Choi. Translations provided by Brea Yumiguano. Rahil Chatterjee contributed to this story